136 HACKS AND HUNTERS 



whose capabilities were far from being as great as the 

 ambitions of his rider. But, although this unfortunate 

 woman had goodness knows how many falls during 

 her pursuit of me (and I thought several times that I 

 had managed to shake her) she always bobbed up again, 

 each time more heavily plastered with mud. Nothing 

 daunted, at the end of the run she rode up to me with 

 a beam on her face and thanked me profusely for 

 giving her such a " splendid run." 



There is a certain etiquette in negotiating fences 

 which must be as strictly observed by the women as 

 by the men in the field. Although in Ireland men 

 often say "after you" to a woman approaching a bank, 

 as a general rule it is up to the women to share the 

 discomforts and dangers of the field without expect- 

 ing any particular courtesy from the men. There is 

 no reason on earth why a man should lose a run in 

 order to pull a rail down for a woman, or hold a gate 

 open beyond the ordinary length of time that he 

 would in decency allow the next rider, be it man or 

 woman, to pass through. Men are always most gal- 

 lant in assisting a woman to remount after a fall, but 

 for my part I never consider it my due, but always 

 think it extraordinarily nice of them to do so. Of 

 course if a rider is hurt, or is caught in a nasty place, it 

 is only common humanity to stop and help, be it man 

 or woman; or if a lost horse passes, to attempt to catch 

 him and fasten him, when possible, to the next tree or 

 fence. But as a general rule for men and women 

 alike, it is sauve qui pent in the hunting field, and 

 the devil take the hindmost. 



Two people should never attempt to jump one 

 panel at the same time, and if only one panel in a 

 fence is jumpable, then each rider should take his 



